NSW: Is it usual to elect a strata committee by eliminating unwanted candidates?

This article discusses whether voting against candidates is allowed in strata committee elections in NSW and how these elections are usually run.

Question: Can a chairperson run a strata committee election by asking owners to vote against candidates rather than for them?

I have two questions about strata committee vacancies and election procedures.

First, is there any reason a strata manager would advise a strata committee not to fill a vacancy after a committee member resigns, where the next AGM is not imminent?

Second, at a recent AGM, we had seven candidates for five strata committee positions. The chairperson asked owners to vote for the candidates they did not want on the committee rather than for the ones they did. Is this a valid or normal voting procedure for electing the strata committee?

Answer: Negative voting is not expressly prohibited. However, it would not be the conventional method for electing a strata committee.

A strata committee may appoint an eligible person as a member to fill a vacancy. The keyword is ‘may’, not must. The legislation allows the strata committee to fill the position, but does not require it to do so. If the committee can function, it may continue operating with fewer members.

Practical reasons that a position may not be filled would include the remaining committee still has quorum capacity, avoiding the administrative burden and cost and a need to maintain functional stability.

The Act doesn’t prescribe a voting method. It refers to the majority of votes cast in an election, which might suggest that a positive voting system is in place, where candidates receiving the highest number of votes are elected. Negative voting is not expressly prohibited. However, it would not be the conventional method used to elect a strata committee.

Mark Louis
Vital Strata Management
E: mark@vitalstrata.com.au
P: 02 9008 1112

This post appears in the April 2026 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.

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Read next:

• NSW: Can owners access the voting count for strata committee elections?
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